1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a device for hooking a heddle of a weaving loom of Jacquard type to a cord belonging to a harness. The invention also relates to a weaving loom heddle equipped with such a device and to a weaving loom equipped with such a heddle.
2. Brief Description of the Related Art
Each hook of a Jacquard mechanism is known to be associated with a harness cord to which a plurality of cords are connected, the assembly of these cords constituting the harness of the Jacquard mechanism. In its lower part, each cord is hooked to the upper end of a heddle which comprises a mail for passage of a warp yarn.
The heddles are generally formed by metal wires. It is known, particularly from FR-A-2 212 891, to bend the upper end of each heddle so as to constitute a loop for passage of the cord, the cord being maintained in position in this loop thanks to a possibly heat-retractable sheath or any other appropriate means.
In this type of device, it is necessary to bend the end of each heddle precisely, which is a relatively delicate maneuver, as the loop formed at the upper end of each heddle must have minimum dimensions in order not to bump against the ends of the adjacent heddles, it being understood that the density of the installed heddles of a weaving loom is high. With the known devices, it has proved to be difficult to master the transverse dimensions of the loops formed by bent-over wires, with the result that the sheaths which cover them rub against one another, this inducing overheating and premature wear of these sheaths which may disturb the functioning of the weaving loom.
In addition, in the known devices, the loop of metal wire essentially extends in a first plane containing the heddle, while the cord is disposed in a second plane substantially perpendicular to the first plane, with the result that the sheath which covers these two objects at the same time undergoes considerable deformations in two transverse dimensions. If the sheath is not flexible enough, it may tear or stretch in these two dimensions to the point of bumping against the sheaths of the adjacent heddles.
It is a particular object of the present invention to overcome these drawbacks by proposing a hooking device whose transverse dimensions may be mastered with high precision, while its cost remains attractive.